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Millennials are often referred to as being the “snowflake” generation, referring to their sensitive nature to life’s problems. However, recent research from Freedom Finance has found that in reality they really do have it tougher than both baby boomers did and generation X.

The study compared three generations across Great Britain, focusing on work life, housing, retirement and finances and has found that millennials are struggling more across all four areas. A key area where they have it tougher is their mental health, suffering more stress and job insecurity than the older generations did.

Workplace stress

According to the survey of 2,000 UK adults, 88% of millennials suffer at least some level of work place stress, that’s 18 percentage points higher than baby boomers (70%) and 7 higher than Gen X (81%). New technologies and unrealistic expectations can mean it is difficult to switch off from work, whether that’s email access from personal mobiles, flexible working blurring the lines between work and personal time.

3 ways to minimise stress in the workplace:

Start an open door policy - An open door policy helps create a friendly environment for employees to air their problems. One of the best ways to start with mental health issues is to talk about them openly.

Create a mental health strategy - Implementing a mental health strategy is really important for worker’s wellbeing. There are many potential routes to go down, with one of the most well-known resources for helping develop your strategy is MIND.

Managing workloads – As a business leader you need to be aware of overall workloads and even individuals. Often employees want to prove they are a success and so won’t admit that they are struggling, by making workloads realistic you can help manage stress. Training for individuals to help them start to manage this better themselves can also help.

Job insecurity

Millennials also feel less secure in their jobs and this isn’t surprising, as they’ve already had on average five different jobs. That’s only two less than baby boomers had over the duration of their working lives.

3 ways to make millennials feel secure in their roles:

Clear progression paths – encouraging progression may help workers feel more secure as they can see the company investing time into their careers. It shows they are valued and that you see their potential within the company.

Rewards and pay – rewards and pay are big motivating factors for employees and making sure individuals are fairly rewarded for their work can make them feel secure.

Give feedback and be open with staff – being open about company figures, success and even failures can help staff feel more secure and in the loop, whilst positive feedback will reinforce that they are a valued member of the company.